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Tuesday, February 17, 2015

European Rabbis: A Liability to the Jewish People?

כ"ט לחודש האחד עשר תשע"ה

PM Netanyahu

Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's (Likud) call for mass aliyah (immigration to Israel) of Europe's Jews has been the target of criticism. Political pandering? Propping himself up as the "Mr. Security" candidate? Securing Likud voters for future, if not the current elections? After all, the Left has been accused of doing the same, by recruiting non-Jews in the Former Soviet Union for aliyah, as well as encouraging special status, if not citizen arrangements for foreign workers.

Jair Melchior, Denmark's chief rabbi, said he was "disappointed" by Netanyahu's call for immigration following the attack.

"Terror is not a reason to move to Israel," he said.

Esser Agaroth (2¢):
Although not specifically written as a response to the Danish Chief Rabbi's odd remark, the following comic does fit part of the bill.

Asher Schwartz, The Jewish Press, February 16, 2015

But, how can the Danish Chief Rabbi's "Terror is not a reason to move to Israel," comment be responded to in full? After all, aren't there terror attacks in Israel, just like there are in Denmark, France, England, Belgium, and elsewhere?

The day after the deadly terror attack at a synagogue in Copenhagen, European rabbis described the atmosphere in the continent's Jewish communities as a "battle on terror in our homeland."

European countries' chief rabbis, city rabbis and community leaders warned Sunday that Europe's Jews were subject to anti-Semitic persecution and anti-religious legislation, which prevented them from living a safe Jewish life in the continent.

They once again demanded the continent's leaders increase security around all Jewish institutions. meanwhile, they said they were not taking any risks and were preparing to defend themselves.

Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt, president of the Conference of European Rabbis, condemned the "horrific terror attack," which he said "is both sickening and a sign of the worsening extremism spreading across Europe."

Criticizing European leaders, Rabbi Goldschmidt said that "the Jewish community in Denmark is a microcosm of what is happening to Jewish communities across the continent. On the one hand they are under attack from extremist Muslims who see every Jew as a legitimate target, on the other hand, freedom of religion is curtailed by the government, religious slaughter has been forbidden and the parliament is in discussions about the future of religious circumcision.

"I truly hope that this latest attack will lead the people of Denmark to rally behind the Jewish community just as they did in 1943, securing the future of the community," he concluded. (cont.)

Our Homeland??!!

This is absolutely disgraceful! There is no excuse for such a comment!

Denmark is not "our homeland." Neither is anyplace else within Europe.

And Rabbi Goldschmidt and rabbis like him pray for the return to Eretz Yisra'el, and the rebuilding of the Holy City of Jerusalem, three times daily??!!

Even though he is correct when he states that "...they are under attack from extremist Muslims who see every Jew as a legitimate target, on the other hand, freedom of religion is curtailed by the government, religious slaughter has been forbidden and the parliament is in discussions about the future of religious circumcision."

And so, his solution is this??"I truly hope that this latest attack will lead the people of Denmark to rally behind the Jewish community just as they did in 1943, securing the future of the community?"

Rabbi Goldschmidt needs to review his European Jewish history. Otherwise, he is destined to repeat it, and lead European Jews to do the same.

Danes put their Jewish neighbors on boats, and scurried them across the to supposed safety in "neutral" Sweden. But, many of them made it into Nazi hands anyway. Of course, this is all moot, because the ISS, the Islamic State of Sweden is hardly an option.

But, I digress...

Here is the result of the influence of "rabbis" such as Melchior and Goldschmidt. I hope that they are not motivated by concerns over holding onto their prestigious positions. In other words, no Jews left in Europe, no need for European rabbis. I would at least hope they were not as shallow at that, and simply suffered from a self-destructive hasqafah (perspective).

The man suspected of killing two people in shootings in Copenhagen was identified in several Danish media outlets on Sunday as Omar El-Hussein. Reports in Lebanon said he was the child of Palestinian immigrants from Ain al-Hilweh, a refugee camp in Lebanon...

...Denmark's small but vibrant Jewish community rebuffed Israel's call to emigrate on Sunday after an attack on Copenhagen's main synagogue that shook the sense of security Scandinavian tolerance had long provided...

...As in the French case, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Denmark's 2,500 Jews they would be welcome in his country. "Israel is your home," he said in Jerusalem.

"We appreciate the invitation, but we are Danish citizens, this is our country," Dan Rosenberg Asmussen, chairman of the Jewish Society in Denmark, told Reuters as he offered condolences to mourners at the synagogue. (cont.)

Not much I can say about my brothers and sisters in Denmark, except that they are doomed, and that this saddens me.

Jews are supposed to live in Israel, if at all possible, not in Denmark, nor anywhere else in Europe.

In the 1930's and '40's, Rabbi Yissachar Shlomo Teichtelhy"d warned Jews of the dangers of the Nazis, and encouraged them to abandon Europe for a new life in Israel. In his quintessential work Em HaBanim Smeicha, this once anti-Zionist brought countless sources to support that it was not only permissible to immigrate to Israel, but that it was preferable to any other destination.

And, now that gates to Eretz Yisra'el have been opened, and have remained open, ,

Now that the gates to Eretz Yisra'el have been reopened since 1948/תש"ח. Even after countless challenges to our claim to our Homeland, and even to our lives, such as during the Six-Day War and the Yom Kippur War, its gates have remained open.

There is no excuse for any knowledgeable Jew not [to put forth his best efforts] to live in our true Homeland of Eretz Yisra'el.

Any comic written to follow the one posted above, should say that God gave us instructions as to what to do to defend ourselves while residing in Eretz Yisra'el, but we have not been following them in full. The Israeli Government has favored Western approaches in dealing with our security issues, rather than Torah approach. Instead, we have heeded the concerned of the "international community," not wanting to offend them. Even though our mere existence offends them anyway.

We, the Jewish People, have been suffering the consequences of its actions. Fortunately, Rabbi Teichtal teaches that the power of such individuals, the "non-kosher birds," as he calls them, over Eretz Yisra'el will be temporary,

Nevertheless, this is the difference between the physical dangers of living in galuth and those found while living in Israel.

Eretz Yisra'el is where we are supposed to invest our time, money, blood, sweat, and tears, even our lives, not in Denmark, nor anywhere else in Europe or the rest of the world.

5 comments:

I agree with you I don't like his comments, however there is room to be dan adam l'chaf zchut. After the shooting in the Jewish market in Paris I heard an interview on Kol B'Rama with some Rav from Paris, perhaps the rav of the main shul (can't remember for sure). He said as subtly as he could that there is a big difference what they will say to European media in French vs Israeli media in Hebrew. He said while they do feel the proper option may indeed be to make aliyah, they know that not all Jews will do so and in the meantime they are worried that if they publicized too alarmist of rhetoric they European government authorities may be less willing to provide them added security and services to the Jews who choose to remain. In a way they don't want to burn their bridges by making their current governments look bad. It's a tough tight rope to walk as it may be interpreted by European Jews as advice not to leave, or even be used as evidence by the rest of the world to discredit Bibi/Israel. I guess it's a gamble they feel is worth taking. I hope Hashem helps them to guide their communities properly

I have posted more reasons to make Aliyah such as links about anti semitic attacks, along with the French Aliyah page and The Jewish Agency Global Service Center web page and all the phone numbers. http://jerusalemcats.com/we-have-no-other-country-%D7%90%D7%99%D7%9F-%D7%9C%D7%A0%D7%95-%D7%90%D7%A8%D7%A5-%D7%90%D7%97%D7%A8%D7%AA/